1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an adjustable steering column assembly for a vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Vehicles may be equipped with an adjustable steering column assembly including a column jacket that adjusts a position of a steering wheel to enhance the comfort and safety of a driver within a vehicle compartment. For example, the column jacket may be adjusted in a telescoping direction for moving the steering wheel closer to and away from the driver and/or the column jacket may be adjusted in a raking direction to move the steering wheel up and down relative to the driver. In other words, the column jacket defines a longitudinal axis with the column jacket moveable along the longitudinal axis for movement in the telescoping direction and/or the column jacket is moveable transverse to the longitudinal axis for movement in the raking direction. These features cooperate to enable the driver to adjust the steering wheel to a desired, convenient position for operating the vehicle and for enabling the steering wheel to be moved out of the way to provide greater access to getting into and out of the driver's seat of the vehicle.
Typically the column jacket is mounted to a telescope bracket and a rake bracket is coupled to the telescope bracket with the rake bracket mounted to the vehicle for supporting the assembly. The telescope bracket defines a telescoping slot along the longitudinal axis for allowing movement of the column jacket in the telescoping direction. The rake bracket defines a raking slot transverse to the longitudinal axis for allowing movement of the column jacket in the raking direction. When the driver applies a force (e.g. pushing or pulling) to the steering wheel which is off-center from the longitudinal axis during adjustments (e.g. the driver is applying the force at a top or a bottom of the steering wheel), a reaction force is applied to the telescoping slot which is off-center from the longitudinal axis thus causing the column jacket to bind or catch during adjustments.
In addition, the telescope bracket flanks the column jacket and the rake bracket flanks both the telescope bracket and the column jacket. A bolt is disposed through the telescoping and raking slots below the column jacket relative to the longitudinal axis. A locking mechanism is coupled to the bolt below the column jacket for selectively allowing and preventing movement of the column jacket in the telescoping and raking directions. Having the bolt, the locking mechanism, and the telescope and rake brackets disposed below the column jacket reduces an amount of open space in the driver's knee area within the vehicle compartment. In other words, the adjustable steering column assembly is bulky, heavy, and consumes a large amount of space in the vehicle compartment. Hence, the driver may be injured, particularly within the driver's knee area, because the reduced amount of open space causes the driver to impact the adjustable steering column assembly during a collision.
Therefore there remains a need to develop an adjustable steering column assembly that increases an amount of open space in a vehicle compartment for preventing injury to a driver during a collision while also preventing binding and/or catching of the column jacket during adjustments.